Ghana coach, captain hail Flames

Ghana national team coach Kwesi Appiah and his stand-in captain Asamoah Gyan have saluted the Flames, saying they are not an ordinary team.

Appiah and Gyan were speaking in a post-match press briefing after the Black Stars’ 2-0 win over the Flames at home in Accra on Saturday in a 2013 Africa Cup of Nations final qualification round first leg.

Despite being satisfied with the result, Appiah, however, praised Flames’ discipline and called for his charges not to be complacent in the return leg.

“Malawi is not an ordinary team that we can walk over. Tactically, they are very disciplined. When that happens, then you do not rush the ball, you change position and try to create spaces for strikers to score.

“We tried to do that, but it was difficult because like I said, they are a good team,” said Appiah.

Gyan also paid tribute to the Flames, describing them as a very spirited side.

“They do not have even one player who plays overseas like us. They also did not have some of their key players so I hear, but look at how spirited they were. Their fighting spirit was very good,” said Gyan.

Flames coach Kinnah Phiri attributed his team’s loss to inexperience.

“Appiah has built a very good team and he is lucky because he has the depth in the squad. We lost because of inexperience, but we hope to do well in the return leg,” said Kinnah.

Meanwhile, Kinnah has said he will ring some changes in preparation for the return leg scheduled for next month.

“The return leg is a must-win for us, therefore, we will have to call some players such as Zico Mkanda to beef up the attack,” he said.

The coach also played down defender James Sangala’s red card saying he will be replaced by Foster Namwera who will also be returning from suspension.